Social Listening: How Brands Can Benefit From Positive and Negative Comments

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Have you ever listened to conversations without an invitation? “Eavesdroppers never hear any good of themselves” is an idiom many people are all too familiar with. Essentially this phrase means if you eavesdrop on conversations where people are talking about you, more times than not you may hear many unfavorable things spoken about you. When brands read or listen to comments written about them it is not considered eavesdropping. Chatter that is in a social setting is open and not private. Hence, such conversations shift to social listening, as opposed to social eavesdropping.

Brands are doing more social listening as they connect to their audiences. Why? Oftentimes, customers do not feel that companies really listen to them. Sometimes out of frustration, they may post harsh comments that warrant immediate attention. Quite often, other consumers may jump on the bandwagon to fan the flames of negativity. Brands are finding out more than ever that social chatter through social media conversations can help them better understand their customers. Here are 5 beneficial reasons why brands should pay attention to social listening:

1. Social monitoring helps brands to enhance the customer experience. Eye and ear listening skills are used to understand and respond to what matters to the audience, and not what marketers or your social team may think matters to end-users.

2. Social listening helps brands respond expeditiously to reputation management. It can open them up to a world of opportunities, insights, growth and development.

3. Engagement is more efficient by offering new products and services that consumers want. Social dialogue is a good way to take suggestions or problems customers may express on social platforms and use them to produce a new offering for their consumers.

5. Companies can learn and benefit from targeted points made on social channels. It’s a helpmate in analyzing what competitors are or aren’t doing. Such comments can help brands become pioneers in select services or technology.

Social chatter is not limited to big brands. Regardless of size, every brand with an audience needs to engage in social listening. Companies hear through their social platforms and other popular social channels they may not be connected to. It’s been known that marketers and other company employees run across comments, reviews, praises or complaints they may not be aware of exists among cyber-chatter. Brands are able to conduct research through social listening, touch the pulse points of customers and monitor their marketing campaigns to maximize their investments. Yet, companies can also benefit from negative comments, as much as they can from positive feedback.

Are you monitoring all of your social media platforms, including your video channels? Are you seriously listening to the social chatter taking place on your social networks? Social listening does not only apply to a brand’s specific industry, but also through contrasting brands or competitor’s social responses. You can learn a lot by how others react and respond. Social media listening is built for the textual world to target and influence customers and make sure they are heard. Conversations are coming from a variety of social sources and brands must reach their audience by listening to them in a profound way.